visit means for us china relations. a dramatic rise in the number of ukrainian deaths in the war in ukraine according to estimates from us officials. we're tracking the potential for destructive life—threatening winds in florida as hurricane idalia, now a category 2, barrels towards the sunshine state. winds and rain are already whipping across the coast in some parts of the state as forecasters warn the storm is "extremely dangerous." it's expected to make landfall early wednesday, likely reaching category 3 force as it hits. a potentially life—threatening storm surge of up to 3.5 metres or 15 feet above ground level and destructive waves are expected to slam the coast. the purple on this map shows what areas can expect more than a 12—foot surge. evacuations and preparations for the storm are under way. the worst of it is expected

to hit the more sparsely populated areas further north, but things can change quickly. at his latest briefing, florida governor ron desantis warned residents to evacuate now, while they still can, as the storm is fast approaching. so this is crunch time right now. we're going to get hit with a major hurricane. it'll be some time, the eye will arrive on shore some time tomorrow morning, most likely. and it is going to have major impacts, particularly along florida's big bend region. so listen to your local officials. take the appropriate precautions to protect you and your family. and once the storm passes, we will have help that will be on the way. earlier i spoke to jason allen about the storm. for earlier i spoke to jason allen about the storm.— earlier i spoke to jason allen about the storm. for the moment it is uuite about the storm. for the moment it is quite calm — about the storm. for the moment

it is quite calm on _ about the storm. for the moment it is quite calm on crystal- it is quite calm on crystal clear river because for the last few hours there was a heavy band of rain that passed through entering stride out but we are watching the radar and know as the storm sits 20 miles to the rest right now for the bands of rain as we watch them come through the tampa area will make their way here stopping we will expect the rain in the next few hours also in the next few hours we expect when to pick up, very light breeze here right now the tropical storm strength wind is approaching and expected to be here within the next few hours. how are people preparing and people and the authorities how are they preparing?— are they preparing? great question _ are they preparing? great question we _ are they preparing? great question we hear- are they preparing? great question we hear people | are they preparing? great i question we hear people will just ride the storm out but remember this is an area that less than a year ago saw hurricane ian come in much the same direction and saw the damage and destruction that hurricane did as it took the right hand turn to the fort myers area which is south of

us, with that knowledge in mind especially with all the damage of the storm surge and it did they have taken this storm very seriously, i took talked to the sheriff in this county a couple of hours ago the city felt everyone was taking it seriously, a lot of people boarding up crimes, packing up their things and moving them to higher elevations, staying with people on a higher elevation. 0n crystal river elevation is for macro or five feet above sea level, the worst—case forecast as the water could rise anywhere between seven to 11 feet, depending on the exact path of the storm stopping with that in mind people have been preparing, they have been heeding the evacuation orders and in one of your earlier questions was are the shelters? there are, the schools are all close today and tomorrow, many of the schools in the inland areas have been turned into shelters places for people to stay, families to stay, places to keep their animals. a lot of

businesses started shutting down the day in preparation for the storm, and as to where others are going if they are not going to a shelter, people are making plans at their home if they feel a disable making plans to go to homes of relatives or friends further inland. it will be an interesting i2 inland. it will be an interesting 12 hours. everyone is very cautious and nervous about what to expect, rain bands. moving in the next two hours and the heavy rain and probably in the morning hours we expect to see some of the storm surge in these inland waterways. storm surge in these inland waterways-_ waterways. thank you for bringing _ waterways. thank you for bringing us _ waterways. thank you for bringing us up _ waterways. thank you for bringing us up to - waterways. thank you for bringing us up to date - waterways. thank you for bringing us up to date on | bringing us up to date on crystal river florida. forecasters predict the us states of georgia, north carolina, and south carolina will also see heavy rainfall. this is the expected path of the idalia, hitting florida first, then travelling all the way up to the carolinas before

heading back out to sea. the national hurricane center says residents there should be prepared for long duration power outages, damaging winds and areas of flash flooding. satellite images show the storm approaching. you can also see another storm lurking off the southeast of the us — that's hurricane franklin, a powerful category 4, but it's expected to stay out at sea. and this is hurricane idalia, seen from space as it edges closer to landfall. earlier, i spoke with the national hurricane center's jamie rhome to break down what we can expect from the storm. thank you forjoining us. where is the hurricane at now, it has changed its trajectory a little and strengthened? it is currently _ and strengthened? it is currently 200 - and strengthened? it 3 currently 200 miles south—west of tampa bay, florida, maximum wind has been increasing steadily during the day it is now a category two hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 100 miles an hour and all indications are continues to

intensify as we speak and i more than likely will be a major hurricane this evening. already people in 50 counties are under evacuation orders, schools, colleges closed, airports closed, trains cancelled in hospital suspending services, will this be as scary as it sounds? for some communities _ be as scary as it sounds? for some communities it - be as scary as it sounds? fr?" some communities it will be worse than they envision because so few people understand the power of a major hurricane, just look at the red area which is the hurricane warning area or area where people could expect hurricane conditions. you can see how many large cities tampa bay, the tallahassee into southern georgia could be impacted by these powerful wins. the wind and the rain _ these powerful wins. the wind and the rain is _ these powerful wins. the wind and the rain is one _ these powerful wins. the wind and the rain is one thing, - these powerful wins. the wind and the rain is one thing, you | and the rain is one thing, you area and the rain is one thing, you are a storm surge specialist, what will be the impact of the storm surge? irate what will be the impact of the storm surge?—

what will be the impact of the storm surge? we are looking at it bein: storm surge? we are looking at it being on _ storm surge? we are looking at it being on the _ storm surge? we are looking at it being on the nature _ storm surge? we are looking at it being on the nature coast - storm surge? we are looking at it being on the nature coast of. it being on the nature coast of florida the big bend area, this could see storm surge of 10 or 15 feet, possible in this big event area. less surge to the south and go to the west but still very impactful and a potentially life—threatening storm surges down into the tampa bay area and over all the way around the appellation:. that is a huge volume of people — macro water, what will people see? if} - macro water, what will people see? ' :: ., ' , ., ., - macro water, what will people see? ' ii ., ' , . ., . see? 10 or 15m is hard for a lot of people _ see? 10 or 15m is hard for a lot of people to _ see? 10 or 15m is hard for a lot of people to envision, . see? 10 or 15m is hard for a lot of people to envision, i | see? 10 or 15m is hard for a i lot of people to envision, i am six feet tall, so that is two of me, to people on my shoulders you can see how high that would be. stare shoulders you can see how high that would be.— that would be. are you satisfied _ that would be. are you satisfied with - that would be. are you satisfied with the levelj that would be. are you i satisfied with the level of preparation in place? it is hard to know, _ preparation in place? it is hard to know, we - preparation in place? it is hard to know, we are - preparation in place? it 3 hard to know, we are focused on the weather forecasting so i do not always get the latest information on the preparation,

what little bit i have people are really taking this seriously. if are really taking this seriously.— are really taking this seriousl . , seriously. if this hurricane tracks as _ seriously. if this hurricane tracks as it _ seriously. if this hurricane tracks as it is _ seriously. if this hurricane tracks as it is a _ seriously. if this hurricane tracks as it is a will- seriously. if this hurricane tracks as it is a will go - tracks as it is a will go through the big bend area of florida which has not seen a hurricane like this for a long time ago what is making this track so differently from the ones people would be well used to. , ., , , to. the steering for this is different _ to. the steering for this is different from _ to. the steering for this is different from other - different from other hurricanes, it isjust different from other hurricanes, it is just for anyone area a major hurricane is a relatively rare event, a lot of places receive the edges of a hurricane and i this area has received the edges of many hurricanes but if this track materialises the core of a powerful category three could move through later tomorrow. at move through later tomorrow. at this stage two people had to leave the state to be safe or are there local options for them? , ., ., ., them? they would follow evacuation _ them? they would follow evacuation orders - them? they would follow - evacuation orders followed by - evacuation orders followed by — mac issued by state authorities

and evacuate tens of miles not hundreds of miles.— hundreds of miles. thank you forjoining _ hundreds of miles. thank you forjoining us. _ president biden already approved an emergency declaration for florida on monday where 28 of the state's 67 counties are already under some form of evacuation orders. the president says he's in constant contact with governor desa ntis. we are worried about the surge, the ocean surge, we don't know exactly hour to hour watching this, but i told the governor, and the mayor, regions that are likely to be hit first. we are there as long as it takes, we're going to make sure they have everything they need, thank you. earlier, i spoke to elizabeth zimmerman, former fema associate administrator and director of disaster operations, about the approaching storm. you are no stranger to this type of situation. what is your assessment of the preparations ahead of the hurricane making windfall, can you ever be

cautious, too cautious when dealing with storms like this one? ., .. dealing with storms like this one? ., . ., , dealing with storms like this one? ., , one? you can never be too cautious — one? you can never be too cautious the _ one? you can never be too cautious the state - one? you can never be too cautious the state has - one? you can never be too cautious the state has a i one? you can never be too | cautious the state has a lot one? you can never be too i cautious the state has a lot of experience over the years, many decades of hurricane experience, and over the preparations they are taking of those you should be. looking at the part of the hurricane and what evacuations need to be done by the residents and over those in florida to get away from the coastline as you have noticed, the storm surge is going to be real and i that is something people need to really take precautions and i move away from the edge of the water to higher ground and get out. how far do people need to go to do that do they need to flee the county or the state or are there local shelter options? there are local shelter operations in florida, all the counties are in different evacuation zones so it is

listening to the local authorities to say how far they need to go to get out and what direction they need to go so they are going to safer ground. as we heard a emergency declaration has been activated for florida by president biden, what difference does that make in terms of resources and capabilities for fema and other authorities trying to provide resources there?— authorities trying to provide resources there? that allows the state _ resources there? that allows the state of _ resources there? that allows the state of florida _ resources there? that allows the state of florida to - resources there? that allows the state of florida to know. the state of florida to know they will be reversed by the federal government for the actions they are taking right now, the cost they may incur for evacuating individuals and the shelters and emergency protective measures they are taking, in order to help save lives and protect property at this time as well as any other debris removal which may come forward after the disaster, we know with all the vegetation entries in florida there will be a lot of debris removal that needs to be done. in be a lot of debris removal that needs to be done.— needs to be done. in a practical _ needs to be done. in a practical way - needs to be done. in a practical way how i needs to be done. in a practical way how do i needs to be done. in a l practical way how do you

needs to be done. in a practical way how do you manage a situation like this with impending landfall in florida thenit impending landfall in florida then it is expected to hit georgia and the carolinas as well? ~ �* . georgia and the carolinas as well? ~ ~ ., ., ., well? fema and other federal arencies well? fema and other federal agencies all — well? fema and other federal agencies all have _ well? fema and other federal agencies all have resources, i well? fema and other federal l agencies all have resources, we have supplies in florida, georgia, north carolina, we is coordinating through the regional office to make sure they have the resources that they have the resources that they need and owe the coordination they need to be able to go in and respond as quickly as possible afterwards as well as the urban search and rescue teams that are on alert ready to go, should they need to be activated to go out to find people that are missing. with the wild filed in the flooding we have seen recently, you are very expert in this area are you seeing a change in pace and the number of major natural disasters hitting the us? ., , ~ us? right now it feels like we're getting _ us? right now it feels like we're getting bombarded i us? right now it feels like i we're getting bombarded each day with a new disaster, when

you look at all the hurricanes lined up in the event coming towards the coastline, as well as those in the pacific, the wildfire in maui are still going on still a active response if it as well as other disasters that have happened over the course of the summer, they are ongoing and not stopping. they are ongoing and not stopping-— they are ongoing and not stopping. they are ongoing and not sto inc. , ., , stopping. there is a deep need for resources _ stopping. there is a deep need for resources for _ stopping. there is a deep need for resources for that, - stopping. there is a deep need for resources for that, the i for resources for that, the president promising the florida governor to give them everything that is, what do you think the scale, the hurricane has not hit yet but what do you think the scale of that operation is likely to be? like ou sa operation is likely to be? like you say we — operation is likely to be? like you say we have _ operation is likely to be? like you say we have to _ operation is likely to be? l age: you say we have to wait and see onceit you say we have to wait and see once it goes over to see what the devastation is, to see what it hurts, and what the population is, the infrastructure it might damage, power outages so need to be prepared for line crews to get their clear the trees and get their clear the trees and get the power poles back up and get the power poles back up and get the power back on because you need to have power a lot of times to be able to have water

as well as electricity. lots of key things will be happening tomorrow after the storm enters onto florida and i goes through and to be able to get people up and to be able to get people up and running again, we will hope and running again, we will hope and pray for the best for florida, and georgia, south carolina and north carolina, but they have to be prepared for all of it, that is why the resources from the federal government as well as other states are able to come in and to help them and i know all of thatis to help them and i know all of that is lined up and ready to come in after the storm has passed. come in after the storm has assed. :, ., come in after the storm has assed. . ~' ,. , come in after the storm has assed. ., ,, y., , . come in after the storm has assed. ., ,, , . ., passed. thank you very much for that analysis. _ passed. thank you very much for that analysis. it _ passed. thank you very much for that analysis. it is _ passed. thank you very much for that analysis. it is now _ passed. thank you very much for that analysis. it is now meant i that analysis. it is now meant to be a category four storm when it makes landfall on wednesday morning. experts say these kind of weather events are becoming more commonplace due to climate change. but are hurricanes themselves actually getting worse? 0ur correspondent

carl nasman looks into it. hurricanes. some of the most powerful and damaging tropical storms have hit the us injust the last couple of decades. does that mean they are getting worse? well, if frequency is any measure of how bad they have become, then no. the sheer number of hurricanes hasn't increased, but overall, the storms are getting stronger. the number of category three, four and five hurricanes the most intense is on the rise. that is making these storms more costly and deadly as well. hurricane katrina, which hit louisiana in 2005 reached the coast as a category three storm stop the storm left more than 1200 people dead, displaced hundreds of thousands more are left $125 billion in damages. at the time, it was considered a once in a century storm. but between 2016 and 2018 alone us

was impacted by six other major hurricanes. what powered katrina and other storms is the heatin katrina and other storms is the heat in the oceans are so as oceans warm, hurricanes gain more energy and become more severe. the result, scientists say, is that more will reach higher wind speeds and rates of rainfall which can cause catastrophic destruction and widespread flooding like we saw with hurricane harvey in 2017. 9 trillion gallons of water fell over the texas coast, hitting houston especially hard. the region was under waterfor hard. the region was under water for days hard. the region was under waterfor days and tens hard. the region was under water for days and tens of thousands were displaced. recovery has taken years, so as hurricanes approach in the future, they are more likely to wreak havoc an impact notjust coastal communities, those further inland as well. as hermoso moves ever closer, we are looking at fort myers in

florida, and you can make out there in the dark waves crashing over that bridge at the plaza and clearly very high winds there as well dashmac hurricane idalia. for more information, check out our website. for more information, please check out our website at bbc.com/news for the latest on hurricane idalia. you can find out which areas have been evacuated, as well as on the ground coverage as the storm approaches the florida coast. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. a 20—year—old man in uganda has become the first to be charged under the country's controversial anti—lgbtq legislation, which passed in may. the man is accused of what was described as aggravated homosexuality after he was alleged to have had relations with a 41—year—old man. the 20—year—old's lawyer says he will remain in custody until his case is heard by the country's high court. police in canada have brought an additional 12 charges against a man accused of supplying a poisonous chemical to people who died by suicide. 57—year—old kenneth law had already been charged in may

with two counts of counselling or aiding suicide in canada. the second most powerful republican in the us house of representatives has announced he is being treated for cancer. steve scalise says he had been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a type 0 blood cancer. in a statement, the congressman from louisiana said his cancer was detected early and is treatable. the 57—year—old survived a mass shooting in 2017 and underwent an extensive recovery. you're live with bbc news. the us commerce secretary is in china, the fourth biden administration official to visit the country in three months. it's part of a diplomatic push to stabilize ties between beijing and washington.

raimondo added that the us does not want to sever the links between the two economies, especially with hundreds of billion dollars at stake for both countries. she says us companies tell her china's increasingly un—investible because of raids on businesses. a new counter—espionage law that broadens the definition of spying. washington warns it could be used to penalize any business activities. china, meanwhile, wants to see the us reduce export controls on sensitive technologies. and to scrap a new executive order that bans us investment in key technology industries like quantum computing and artificial intelligence. a short while ago, us commerce secretary gina raimondo had this to say after meeting with chinese ministers. former pakistan prime minister imran khan's three—year sentence for corruption was suspended on tuesday, but he will remain injail after a judge ordered his detention in another case. 0ur caroline davies sent this update. the islamabad high court just behind me has given imran khan bail in the

case that he was found guilty of at the beginning of the month. this is the toshakhana case where he was found guilty of having not declared the money he earned from selling state gifts. imran khan has been in prison since august 5, but this doesn't necessarily mean he will be taken out ofjail at this moment, and that is because there are multiple other cases currently out against imran khan and many of them have arrest warrants for him too. his lawyers have said they will go to the supreme court and here at the high court to try to get him bail across these other cases, but even they have said that they think it is going to be quite difficult to be able to secure that. one of them gave me the odds of a 30% chance that he will actually be released. so, at the moment, it looks like continued legal battles for imran khan and no certainty at all that he will be out ofjail any time soon. russian state media say four military cargo planes have been damaged in a drone attack on an airport in the northwestern city of pskov.

no casualities have been reported. the local governor said the military was repelling an attack. he uploaded video showing a large fire while an explosion could also be heard. all flights have since been cancelled as local officials investigate the scene. pskov is more than 600 kilometres, or about 370 miles away from ukraine, close to the border with estonia. us officials claim there's been a dramatic rise in the number of ukrainian casualties. ukraine has not given an official number of those who have died in battle, but there are reports that as many as 70,000 are dead. the bbc�*s quentin sommerville has more. for this woman, it is her husband she mourns. forfive years, they were together, and the grief is still raw. pavlov was a fitness champion who volunteered to fight. a russian air strike destroyed his convoy

last november.— last november. honestly, it is still very hard to accept i last november. honestly, it is still very hard to accept that l still very hard to accept that he is gone. it is only when i am here that it sinks in. i feel still somewhere. but he is still alive and on a mission. doing hisjob. in marriage, 0ksana made a pact with her husband — she would join up if he was killed in action. she's still getting used to army life and the dangers that come with it. this road is regularly shelled. here, outside bakhmut, they head out

and immediately take cover in nearby woods. this position is in range of russian guns. explosion like thousands of other ukrainians, 0ksana had very little time to mourn. instead, she chose to fight. and what we hear from a lot of soldiers on the front line is that the time to grieve will come when the war is over. pressure is mounting against the spanish football federation's president luis rubiales following his behaviour after the women's world cup final earlier this month. guy hedgecoe has the latest. the president is now looking more isolated than ever because his own federation has turned against him. the matter ——

members of the federation have called on him to resign and to step down as soon as possible, and this is the federation which only a few days ago he seems to have a very strong on. grip but he is also facing pressure from other fronts as well. as it is have announced opening an investigation to see whether or not they can bring a case against him for sexual assault because of that kiss that he gave hermoso, the soccer player at the end of the world cup final. the government wants to remove him from office and has requested that the national sports tribunal open proceedings against him in a move which could lead to his eventual removal. that seems to be a process which is taking rather longer than the government would like. another alternative is simply that mr rubiales steps down of his own accord. we don't know if he intends to do that, but in the south of the country, his

mother is carrying out a hunger strike in defence of her son because she says he has done nothing wrong, she said that infamous kiss was consensual and she has locked herself in a church and is staging this hunger strike in defence of her own son. thanks for watching. i'm caitriona perry in washington. stay with us here on bbc news. we leave you with these pictures of london as we hand over to our colleagues there. take care. hello. 0n the other side of the atlantic, a major weather story is going to be developing during wednesday because florida is bracing for the arrival of hurricane idalia. this storm has been strengthening, moving northwards over the very warm waters of the gulf of mexico. it's going to make landfall during wednesday

in the northwest of florida with a combination of dangerous winds, a life threatening storm surge, with the potential to cause catastrophic flooding. we will, of course, keep you up to date with that. here at home, a much quieter weather outlook for wednesday. sunny spells and scattered showers. most places getting off to a fine start. a little bit of mist here and there that will tend to lift and clear and then a lot of sunshine around. but shower clouds will bubble up through the day. a scattering of showers to take us through the afternoon, the odd heavy one. but there will be some big dry gaps in between temperatures ranging from 15 degrees in stornoway and lerwick to 19 in london, maybe 20 somewhere in the southeast corner. but those temperatures will drop once again under clear skies during wednesday night. the early hours of thursday, though, will bring outbreaks of rain in across the southwest of england, wales,

perhaps northern ireland, turning milder here by the end of the night. but where those clear skies hold on, yes, it will be rather chilly to start thursday. now, on thursday, we'll see this band of rain pushing its way northwards and eastwards, southern parts of england, wales, the midlands, northern ireland, seeing some of that wet weather. much of eastern england staying dry. much of northern england too. and scotland should have a fine day with some spells of sunshine. temperatures north to south, 1a to 19, maybe up to 20 degrees. now, some showery bits and pieces of rain may still be with us on friday, but increasingly, things will be turning drier. there will be some spells of sunshine. those temperatures typically in the mid to high teens, the low 20s for some. and as we head into the weekend, well, actually it looks as if high pressure is going to build across the uk and where we see high pressure, that tends to mean fine and settled weather. so, yes, as we move through the first few days of september, the weather is really going to be settling down. there will be some good spells of sunshine through the weekend. the vast majority will be dry and it's going to feel

a little bit warmer as well. bye for now.

voice—over: this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines for you at the top of the hour, which is straight after this programme. welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. whatever we call them — extreme

right, far right or ultra nationalist — it's clear parties far to the right of the conservative mainstream are gaining ground across europe. perhaps most significant, and to many europeans, most alarming, is the rise of the afd — alternative for deutschland — in germany. they're running second in national polls and winning local elections. my guest is peter boehringer, vice chairman of the afd. is his party stirring sentiments that threaten german stability?